2. Contact Info

3. Dealer Selection

Consumer Reports has called on Tesla to dial back some of its Autopilot features after a fatal crash involving a Model S in Florida. The automaker, which is under investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, told the consumer advocacy publication that it would continue to grow the developing technologies.

In May, a Tesla Model S crashed into a tractor trailer that was making a left turn in front of the car. The Tesla driver died in the incident. According to a blog post on the automaker’s website, “neither Autopilot nor the driver noticed the white side of the tractor trailer against a brightly lit sky, so the brake was not applied.” Tesla defends its Autopilot features saying that the systems are still in Beta and that the driver needs to be constantly ready to take over controls of the vehicle.

As with most active safety tech, Tesla’s Autopilot features (including Autosteer and Auto Lane Change) collect data from cameras, radar, and ultrasonic sensors to center the vehicle in its lane, change lanes, and adjust speed based on traffic. Tesla says Autopilot can also “help the car avoid hazards and reduce the driver’s workload.” While Autopilot is designed to assist the driver, the automaker insists the driver “is still responsible for, and ultimately in control of, the car.”

Consumer Reports’ list of requests for Tesla include:

Disable Autosteer until it can be reprogrammed to require drivers to keep their hands on the steering wheel

Stop referring to the system as “Autopilot” as it is misleading and potentially dangerous

Issue clearer guidance to owners on how the system should be used and its limitations

Test all safety-critical systems fully before public deployment; no more beta releases

Tesla responded to the consumer advocacy publication’s concerns in an emailed statement saying:

“Tesla is constantly introducing enhancements, proven over millions of miles of internal testing, to ensure that drivers supported by Autopilot remain safer than those operating without assistance. We will continue to develop, validate, and release those enhancements as the technology grows. While we appreciate well-meaning advice from any individual or group, we make our decisions on the basis of real-world data, not speculation by media.”

The EV maker also told Consumer Reports that “130 million miles have been driven on Autopilot, with one confirmed fatality.” The company noted that its beta software development process includes “significant internal validation.”

Several Motor Trend editors have driven Tesla vehicles with the company’s Autopilot. Those evaluations can be viewed in our Autopilot First Test, and in this video, while a comparison against other automaker’s autopilot features can be read here.

For more on the publication’s concerns, check out its post here. What do you think about Consumer Reports’ concerns about Tesla’s Autopilot features?

Share this article in:

We’ve Temporarily Removed Comments

As part of our ongoing efforts to make MotorTrend.com better, faster, and easier for you to use, we’ve temporarily removed comments as well as the ability to comment. We’re testing and reviewing options to possibly bring comments back. As always, thanks for reading MotorTrend.com.